


Hint

by yeaka



Category: Star Trek, Star Trek: The Next Generation
Genre: M/M, Vignette
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-14
Updated: 2019-11-14
Packaged: 2021-01-30 21:27:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21434968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yeaka/pseuds/yeaka
Summary: Data thinks he’s sneaky.
Relationships: Data/Geordi La Forge
Comments: 9
Kudos: 164





	Hint

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own Star Trek or any of its contents, and I’m not making any money off this

“...And recheck the power relays,” Geordi suggests, hands flying over the controls as he continues the manual diagnostic. For once, the repairs aren’t pressing—they’re docked at a starbase while most of the crew is on shore leave, and they have plenty of time to correct the issues. Usually, he’d be rushing so he could join the crew, or just leave it up to the starbase’s engineers, but as he has an ex that apparently lives on that station now and has been sending him inappropriate letters ever since they entered her section, he’d rather stay aboard the Enterprise. Besides, he’s fairly confident he and Data can fix it all by themselves. 

Data follows Geordi’s fingers, watching where he points. Geordi taps a small subsection of the map that’s flashed onto the screen. “If we put a backup generator here, we should be able to isolate the replicator system just on this deck. Then we can—”

Data opens his mouth, and Geordi glances up, expecting Data to interject with a better plan. Instead, he lets out a loud, lingering yawn. For an awkward few seconds, Geordi’s just staring into the thermal image of Data’s open mouth, and then Data’s face is back to normal, and Geordi can read the data-stream of his smile. 

Geordi feels compelled to ask, “Are you malfunctioning.”

“No, I was attempting to mimic a human yawn. Was it convincing?”

Geordi can feel the corner of his lips twitching, trying to grin, even though that was an incredibly rude moment to pick for another attempted humanism. He knows there was no way Data was intentionally rude. But he does ask, “Was I boring you?”

“No,” Data answers without any hesitation or consideration, as though the option never would have even occurred to him. 

There’s only one other reason for a yawn. “Were you suggesting you’re tired, then?” Geordi knows perfectly well that Data _can’t_ get tired, but he still attempts a regular rest cycle and could be trying to indicate that. 

But Data says, “No. However, I was attempting to convey a desire to return to my bed by clever and unconventional means. You did suggest I needed more spontaneity in my approach.”

Geordi blankly repeats, “_Bed_,” and then really tries to process everything that came out of Data’s mouth. He slowly rephrases, “That was a pickup line?”

“Yes. Was it successful?”

Geordi stares at Data’s hopefully face. It’s bizarre how _adorable_ he can look, even to a blind man fully aware of his emotional limitations. To anyone else, that couldn’t have been less successful. It was indeed spontaneous, but it wasn’t clever. That minor achievement is still an impressive improvement to Data’s growing dating program.

It’s even more bizarre that Geordi’s into that halting, confusing mess of computerized interest. But he is. He decides, “I suppose we can spare half an hour or so.”

“I believe I can bring you to climax within thirty minutes.”

It’s definitely a good thing Engineering’s been emptied out. Blushing hot, Geordi grabs Data’s smooth hand and tugs him towards the turbolift before he can attempt any more colloquial sensuality.


End file.
